5 best UFC fights of 2018 so far

#3 Robert Whittaker vs. Yoel Romero – UFC 225 – 06/09/2018

Yoel Romero and Robert Whittaker put on the year's best title fight in June

At the start of 2018, a rematch between Robert Whittaker and Yoel Romero didn’t seem too likely – Whittaker had beaten Romero to win the Interim Middleweight title in 2017 and was then upgraded to full champion and signed to defend against Luke Rockhold. But the Aussie picked up a staph infection that ruled him out of that fight, and so Romero stepped in, promptly knocked out Rockhold, and suddenly the rematch was on.

There were few complaints as the initial Whittaker/Romero meeting had been one of the best title fights of 2017, but somehow the 2018 version was even better – and it stands as by far the best title fight that the Octagon has seen thus far this year.

The fight actually started in an odd fashion – Whittaker used his striking game, in particular, a quick jab and a nasty oblique kick to the leg, to pick at Romero who didn’t appear to offer much back. But despite seeing his face swelling up, it always felt like the Cuban was trying to lure Whittaker into a false sense of security.

Sure enough, the third round saw Romero explode into action. A huge right hand send Whittaker sprawling, but where the likes of Rockhold and Tim Kennedy had wilted under his power, Whittaker somehow hung in there – and fired right back. Suddenly the fight resembled a Rocky movie, with both men trading huge blows, and despite taking insane amounts of damage, Whittaker managed to wobble Romero with a head kick.

The fourth and fifth rounds were equally amazing – in the fourth Whittaker practically stopped throwing with his right hand, leading to the announcers suspecting it was broken, but somehow he managed to outland Romero, who appeared to be tired after such a wild third. The fifth round though saw Romero come roaring back, dropping Whittaker with a left hand and again having him on the verge of being finished.

By the time the fight ended, it was anyone’s guess as to who would be declared the winner. Whittaker had arguably had a more consistent offence, but Romero had clearly come closest to a finish. In the end, the Aussie was given the nod – taking a tight split decision – and admitted he’d broken his right hand in the first round.

It was one of the gutsiest performances from a champion in UFC history – and one of the all-time great title fights, too.